Dr Kaweh Kerami of our School of Government and International Affairs reflects on whether Afghanistan has found the peace that the Taliban claim, five years after the group seized power.

Our astronomers are part of an international team which has discovered a new object – a mash-up of a black hole and an enormous star.

Reputation mattered deeply in medieval England. Dr Alex Brown, Associate Professor in Durham University's Department of History and a member of IMEMS, examines how people turned to the courts to defend themselves against rumours, slander and damaging accusations.

Mathematicians working at the computational forefront of algebra, geometry, and combinatorics gathered in Durham earlier this month for MEGA 2026 (Effective Methods in Algebraic Geometry), one of the world's leading conferences in computational algebraic geometry. The event, held from 6–10 July, marked the 19th edition of the prestigious biennial conference series and only the second time it has taken place in the UK.

A major new digital mapping project could help protect some of the world's most important heritage sites from the growing threat of climate change.

Research involving our School of Education has found AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT, can match humans as a source of everyday emotional support.

This project - partially funded by the Royal Society involved 35 students from four schools in County Durham, St John's Bishop Auckland, Framwellgate School, Durham School and St. Leonards.

About 50 researchers from the UK, Japan, Mexico, China, and across Europe visited Durham University from 13–17 July for the Durham Symposium on Metric Geometry, Analysis and Probability. The five-day symposium, hosted by the Department of Mathematical Sciences, brought together established and early-career researchers to share ideas, showcase recent advances, and identify new opportunities for future collaboration.

Slavery did not end with abolitionism in the 19th century. Instead it was rebuilt, again and again, into new forms of unfree labour that still shape the world today

Durham University and Berry College have signed a new articulation agreement, formalising a partnership that has developed through several years of close collaboration.

In this article, Dr Marzieh Kouhi-Esfahani, from our School of Government and International Affairs, examines how the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei became a significant political and diplomatic event, reflecting Iran's domestic priorities and international positioning.

Our researchers are leading on international energy and climate research – from monitoring vulnerable ice sheets to shaping future energy policy.